Q: Is it true wild camels roam in the desert?A: Many years ago, there were indeed camels roaming the deserts of Arizona. Before the railroads came to the state, Jefferson Davis, then the secretary of War, thought camels would solve the region's transportation problems. Buyers were dispatched to the Mideast, and in 1856, the first of the beasts arrived.

The camels were ideally suited for the Arizona desert, especially after Arab camel drivers were imported to handle them.

The best known of these was one Hadji Ali, who became known as Hi Jolly. Unlike many of his colleagues, Hadji Ali remained in the U.S. until his death in 1902. In a cemetery in Quartzsite there is a pyramid-shaped monument, topped by a camel, in his honor. Each year, "Hi Jolly Days" are celebrated in Quartzsite, a quirky event that features camel races.

The camels, as noted above, were a success. Army surveying teams, freight haulers and others in need of beasts of burden found that camels could carry more weight farther than any mule and could live off what little vegetation grew on those arid grounds.

However, with the advent of the Civil War, the camel project was discontinued. Some of the beasts were sold to mining interests, but many were simply turned loose in the desert. It is not known for how many years these feral camels survived, but it was long enough to earn a page in Arizona history.

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Q: Is there a such a thing as a jackalope?A:
No, the tackiest totem of the American West, the jackalope - half bunny, half antelope - is 100 percent tourist trap. It was created on a lark in the early 1930s and immortalized on a Bob Petley postcard. (See photo, at right.)

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Q: Is there really a fortune buried in the Superstition Mountains?A:
Few legends survive longer than the fabled Lost Dutchman's Mine. But is it a legend or a still-hidden fact? Jacob Waltz, a German immigrant mistaken for a Dutchman, was prospecting in the Superstition Mountains in 1891, and supposedly found a mine full of gold. He walked out of the mountains with as much gold as he could carry. He was unable to return after he fell ill, and on his deathbed, told his friends where the mine was hidden. Today, gun-toting prospectors still hunt for that mine, "in the shadow of Weaver's Needle," a tall rock spire visible for miles.

Q: What's this about Arizona having the highest rate of auto
thefts?A: It's true. In early 2004, FBI data showed Arizona with the highest per capita rate of car
thefts in the nation. That rate will likely go down, however, because of aggressive efforts by law
enforcement, including public awareness campaigns, better security systems on cars and a very popular
"baitcar" program that catches thieves on videotape and encourages quick plea deals instead of lengthy
court battles.

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Many of these answers have appeared in The Arizona Republic. Clay Thompson and various staff
writers contributed.